Parentage: ‘RUYLAS1704’ is the result of a controlled cross-pollination breeding program carried out by the inventor at a commercial nursery in Oudenaarde, Belgium, in June of 2015. The inventor performed a controlled cross-pollination of the seed parent, Lavandula pedunculata ‘LOW2010-05’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 27,157), and Lavandula stoechas ‘Papillon’ (not patented), the pollen parent. Seed from said cross was harvested, then germinated, and the resulting 1000 seedlings were grown to a mature size in order to evaluate for desirable commercial characteristics. In June of 2016, the inventor selected the new Lavandula cultivar due to its compact growth habit and large flowers. This new and distinctive cultivar was given the name ‘RUYLAS1704’.
Asexual Reproduction: Asexual reproduction of ‘RUYLAS1704’ was first accomplished in August of 2016 by rooting softwood stem cuttings at a commercial greenhouse in Heythuysen, The Netherlands. Two successive generations have shown that the unique features of the instant cultivar are stable and reproduce true to type.